Scene 5

(A stable in Bethlehem.)

JOSEPH: Alas, this place is over-crowded. All the inns and the hotels are full. There is no room for us. You are soon going to be the mother of a child. And, since we believe in the Angel Gabriel, we can unmistakably say that the child will be the Lord of the entire world. However, here we are now beggars, and beggars cannot be choosers. So let us be satisfied with the stable that they have given us to stay in. Alas, here the cattle are kept and here our baby will be born in a day or two. Needless to say, when our baby is born we shall have to lay him in the manger along with the cows and oxen. Indeed, this is a supreme irony of fate — that the Lord of the Universe begins his earthly sojourn with animals and humble creatures. I am really worried.

MARY: Everything will be all right. Don’t bury yourself in unnecessary worries. Our Lord Supreme is always merciful.

Sri Chinmoy, The Son, Sky Publishers, New York, 1973